Relationship between attendance and academic performance among student-athletes in Obuasi municipality, Ghana

Abstract

Participation in sports is a topic that has gained considerable attention over the years.  While many scholars argue that sports participation results in high academic output among student-athletes, others contended that it decreases academic performance. There is another school of thought that has established that participation in sports promote absenteeism. Despite these discussions, there is a gap in the literature on the relationship between absenteeism and academic performance among student-athletes particularly in a developing country like Ghana. Therefore, this study investigated the relationship between absenteeism and academic performance among 203 student-athletes in two public senior high schools in the Obuasi Municipality of Ghana. A census was employed to gather data from all the student-athletes who were in form three and form two. A generated form that solicits student-athletes end of semester results in the core subjects English, Mathematics, Integrated Science, and Social studies, and attendance for two semesters was the main instrument used to gather the data. Data was analysed using percentages and correlation. The results showed that student-athletes attendance to classes was high and their academic performance was also good. The results further revealed that the academic performance of the student-athletes is linked to their class attendance. It is recommended that the management of senior high schools and other stakeholders within the Obuasi Municipality should find ways of encouraging students to participate in school sports and attend classes regularly since that might improve their academic performance.